scholarly journals Coping with Hypertension among Indigenous Peoples in Brazil and the Role of the Primary Care Nurse: A Critical Review from a Transcultural Perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 942-954
Author(s):  
Mauricio Viana Gomes Oliveira ◽  
Ângela Maria Mendes Abreu ◽  
James R. Welch ◽  
Carlos E. A. Coimbra

Our objective is to critically review the literature addressing the strategic role of nurses in the daily primary care of arterial hypertension in Indigenous communities in Brazil. We selected studies based on an initial keyword search of major bibliographic indexing databases for the years 2000 to 2020 and manual search. Further selection was based on topical, methodological, and thematic relevance, as well as evaluation of scholarship quality and pertinence to our chosen narrative. The literature demonstrates Indigenous peoples do not receive health services that measure up to national standards in large part due to a marked lack of academic and employer preparation for nurses operating in transcultural settings. Inequities were apparent in recurrent reports of victim-blaming, deficient clinical communication with patients, clinical malpractice, devaluation of hypertension as a problem for Indigenous peoples, insufficient intercultural training for nurses, and discrimination against Indigenous students in nursing education programs. This systemic problem needs to be addressed by universities and the Indigenous Health Care Subsystem in Brazil.

Genealogy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 52
Author(s):  
Bronwyn Carlson ◽  
Tristan Kennedy

Social media is a highly valuable site for Indigenous people to express their identities and to engage with other Indigenous people, events, conversations, and debates. While the role of social media for Indigenous peoples is highly valued for public articulations of identity, it is not without peril. Drawing on the authors’ recent mixed-methods research in Australian Indigenous communities, this paper presents an insight into Indigenous peoples’ experiences of cultivating individual and collective identities on social media platforms. The findings suggest that Indigenous peoples are well aware of the intricacies of navigating a digital environment that exhibits persistent colonial attempts at the subjugation of Indigenous identities. We conclude that, while social media remains perilous, Indigenous people are harnessing online platforms for their own ends, for the reinforcement of selfhood, for identifying and being identified and, as a vehicle for humour and subversion.


Author(s):  
Gloria Elizabeth Chacón

Chapter 1 explores Maya and Zapotec systems of communication and contradictory colonial representations about Mesoamerican writing. It argues that writing and power were already interrelated in Mesoamerican indigenous communities so that the attribution of orality to indigenous peoples disavows the key role of pre-Columbian writing. It ends by discussing indigenous colonial texts as well as poetry framed through a double optic or kab’awil by foundational Maya and Zapotec authors such as Gaspar Pedro González, Macario Matus, and Victor de la Cruz.


2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert D. Stefanelli ◽  
Chad Walker ◽  
Derek Kornelsen ◽  
Diana Lewis ◽  
Debbie H. Martin ◽  
...  

In 2015, the Liberal Party of Canada formed a majority federal government on a platform that included prioritizing Nation-to-Nation relationships with Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) peoples in the country and re-asserting global leadership in climate change action by moving away from fossil-fuel based extraction and toward renewable energy initiatives. It may be argued that addressing both of these issues, advancing Indigenous–Settler reconciliation, and mitigating climate change, can be done in the same space. Indeed, though Indigenous peoples in Canada and elsewhere have recently moved forward with renewable energy initiatives within their Territories, there has been very little critical analysis on just how such projects have been operationalized and whether renewable energy can or even should be considered a vehicle for reconciliation efforts. In this paper, we present a systematic review of Canadian literature (spanning from 1980 to 2017) concerning Indigenous peoples’ involvement in renewable energy to better understand the stated motivations and desires of Indigenous peoples in Canada taking leadership, partnering in, and (or) participating in the renewable energy sector. Using a series of keyword search strings across three academic databases, two theses databases, and a grey literature search, we retrieved literature (n = 980) that was subjected to four exclusionary forms and then thematically analyzed the included literature (n = 26). Our findings suggest Indigenous peoples’ experiences and motivations are varied, yet many are developing renewable energy in their Territories to: break free of colonial ties, move towards energy autonomy, establish more reliable energy systems, and reap the long-term financial benefits that clean energy can provide. Despite the apparent advantages seen throughout most of the literature reviewed here, we suggest further research in this area is necessary before this kind of positive rhetoric of renewable energy in Indigenous communities builds enough momentum that proponents become blind to possible shortcomings. We conclude with a broader discussion of the interactions between Indigenous–Settler reconciliation in the context of renewable energy projects as well as offering indicators for future research to fill current knowledge gaps.


2011 ◽  
Vol 70 (4) ◽  
pp. 400-406 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Walker ◽  
Marc Tennant ◽  
Stephanie D Short

Objective: This research was undertaken to explore factors operating at the level of the clinic and the community which influence the development of the oral health role of Indigenous Health Workers. The research is a significant aspect of a wider study of the disconnect between the strong national policy support for the development of the oral health role of Indigenous Health Workers and the limited development of the role. Design: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with Indigenous Health Workers to explore their perceptions of the priority of the development of an oral health role and to identify facilitators and barriers to sustainable role development. Setting: The study was conducted in three remote Indigenous communities and two regional centres of the Cape York region in far north Australia. Method: Interviews were conducted with 21 Indigenous Health Workers through five group interviews and eight individual interviews. Results: The findings highlight the high priority given by Indigenous Health Workers to the development of their oral health role while also identifying significant barriers to the sustainable development of this role. Conclusion: The identification of barriers to role development operating at the level of the clinic and the community helps to explain the disconnect between policy and practice in the development of the oral health role of these community health personnel.


2013 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Constance MacIntosh

State and international laws have often been instruments of oppression against Indigenous peoples, enabling and casting a veil of legitimacy over state actions that dispossess, assimilate, and discriminate. In the contemporary setting such law has, at times, come to be harnessed to support or protect Indigenous interests, including addressing Indigenous health deficits and associated injustices.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chantelle Richmond

The persistence of egregious inequities signals that we are at a critical juncture regarding the health of Canada’s Indigenous peoples. Now is the time to seriously reflect on the relationships between Indigenous realities, public policy, and the role of Indigenous research environments therein. Addressing the complexity of contemporary Indigenous health inequity requires a fundamental reorientation in the ways we conduct and think about research. This commentary explores the transition currently taking place in Indigenous health training and development in Canadian universities, with a focus on Ontario’s Indigenous Mentorship Network. At the heart of the Ontario Network is the Anishinabe philosophy Mno Nimkodadding Geegi (“We Are All Connected”).  In our attempts to address Indigenous health inequality in Canada, we take the perspective that the most important answers will come when we take the time to listen to Indigenous communities. This commentary closes with a discussion on bravery. Just as Indigenous scholars push to make space for their scholarship within the university environments, so too must our institutions have the bravery needed to address the structural changes required to foster that success.


Elem Sci Anth ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Villén-Pérez ◽  
Paulo Moutinho ◽  
Caroline Corrêa Nóbrega ◽  
Paulo De Marco

Brazilian indigenous lands prevent the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest while protecting the land rights of indigenous peoples. However, they are at risk because they overlap with large areas of registered interest for mining. Indigenous lands have been in the spotlight of the pro-development wing of the parliament for decades, and the current president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, promised that he would open up these territories for exploitation. Recently, bill PL191/2020 was released to downgrade the protection status of indigenous lands by regulating mining activities in these territories. Mining operations have an unavoidable socio-environmental impact on indigenous communities that is difficult to compensate. First, rapid demographic growth associated with the incoming migrant workforce often causes social disruption and threat indigenous societies. Moreover, sustained pollution related to mining procedures and accidental spills largely degrade the environment and imperil indigenous health. Finally, mining operations drive deforestation both within and beyond their operational boundaries. Mining is already an essential determinant of forest loss in the Amazon, where further deforestation may result in extended droughts with significant social and economic consequences. We conclude that, if mining operations were allowed in Brazilian indigenous lands, indigenous peoples would be imperiled along with regional and global climate and economies.


Author(s):  
Brianna F. Poirier ◽  
Joanne Hedges ◽  
Lisa G. Smithers ◽  
Megan Moskos ◽  
Lisa M. Jamieson

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (respectfully, subsequently referred to as Indigenous) children in Australia experience oral disease at a higher rate than non-Indigenous children. A history of colonisation, government-enforced assimilation, racism, and cultural annihilation has had profound impacts on Indigenous health, reflected in oral health inequities sustained by Indigenous communities. Motivational interviewing was one of four components utilised in this project, which aimed to identify factors related to the increased occurrence of early childhood caries in Indigenous children. This qualitative analysis represents motivational interviews with 226 participants and explores parents’ motivations for establishing oral health and nutrition practices for their children. Findings suggest that parental aspirations and worries underscored motivations to establish oral health and nutrition behaviours for children in this project. Within aspirations, parents desired for children to ‘keep their teeth’ and avoid false teeth, have a positive appearance, and preserve self-esteem. Parental worries related to child pain, negative appearance, sugar consumption, poor community oral health and rotten teeth. A discussion of findings results in the following recommendations: (1) consideration of the whole self, including mental health, in future oral health programming and research; (2) implementation of community-wide oral health programming, beyond parent-child dyads; and (3) prioritisation of community knowledge and traditions in oral health programming.


Author(s):  
Wendy Gifford ◽  
Margo Rowan ◽  
Peggy Dick ◽  
Shokoufeh Modanloo ◽  
Maggie Benoit ◽  
...  

Abstract Purpose The purpose of this systematic review is to synthesize the evidence on the types of interventions that have been utilized by Indigenous Peoples living with cancer, and report on their relevance to Indigenous communities and how they align with holistic wellness. Methods A systematic review with narrative synthesis was conducted. Results The search yielded 7995 unique records; 27 studies evaluating 20 interventions were included. The majority of studies were conducted in USA, with five in Australia and one in Peru. Study designs were cross-sectional (n=13); qualitative (n=5); mixed methods (n=4); experimental (n=3); and quasi-experimental (n=2). Relevance to participating Indigenous communities was rated moderate to low. Interventions were diverse in aims, ingredients, and outcomes. Aims involved (1) supporting the healthcare journey, (2) increasing knowledge, (3) providing psychosocial support, and (4) promoting dialogue about cancer. The main ingredients of the interventions were community meetings, patient navigation, arts, and printed/online/audio materials. Participants were predominately female. Eighty-nine percent of studies showed positive influences on the outcomes evaluated. No studies addressed all four dimensions of holistic wellness (physical, mental, social, and spiritual) that are central to Indigenous health in many communities. Conclusion Studies we found represented a small number of Indigenous Nations and Peoples and did not meet relevance standards in their reporting of engagement with Indigenous communities. To improve the cancer survivorship journey, we need interventions that are relevant, culturally safe and effective, and honoring the diverse conceptualizations of health and wellness among Indigenous Peoples around the world.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document